Editor's Pick | India- China reach deal to ease LAC tensions

A breakthrough has reportedly been achieved for India-China ties. The two countries reached an agreement pertaining to the “patrolling arrangements” and the resolution of the military stand-off at the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the Union government announced on Monday. Officials told The Hindu that the agreement includes the friction points of Demchok and Depsang. The news was announced by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri during a press briefing on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Russia for the BRICS summit, which Chinese President Xi Jinping is also expected to attend. Mr. Misri said that over the last several weeks, discussions between Indian and Chinese diplomatic and military negotiators at various fora have yielded agreements on patrolling arrangements along the LAC, “leading to disengagement and a resolution of the issues that had arisen in these areas in 2020.” No further details about the agreement were offered by Mr. Misri, who has previously served as India’s Ambassador to China. He did however, highlight a few recent meetings leading up to the breakthrough; this includes two meetings between Mr. Jaishankar and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in June-July, two meetings of the WMCC mechanism of diplomatic and military officials in July-August, and a meeting between National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Mr. Wang in September. The importance of the patrolling agreement was delineated by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar a few hours later: the patrolling had stopped in 2020, following which the two sides accepted “buffer zones” in some areas of dispute which prevented patrolling along the usual routes by the two militaries. On an interview to the television channel NDTV, Mr Jaishankar said that with this, “we have gone back to where the situation was in 2020. With that we can say the disengagement process with China has been completed.” Previously, the government has indicated that disengagement would merely be the start and normalcy at the LAC would be restored only after “deinduction and demobilisation” of troops by both sides. The Chinese government has not announced the agreement or commented about it. The announcement may portend a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping at the BRICs summit, being held in Kazan. However, when asked about a possible meeting between the leaders, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lin Jian said they would inform “if anything comes up”. Mr. Misri too, did not confirm such a meeting, but indicated that the government was considering a number of bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan. The Hindu’s Editorials Culture and society: On upholding Section 6A of the Citizenship Act ​Allow for deliberation: On the legitimate demands of Ladakh The Hindu’s Daily Quiz What is the average per-day income of a farmer in the country? ₹50 ₹27 ₹200 ₹120 To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 22 October 2024 [The Hindu logo] [EP Logo] Editor's Pick 22 October 2024 In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [View in browser]( [More newsletters]( India- China reach deal to ease LAC tensions A breakthrough has reportedly been achieved for India-China ties. The two countries reached [an agreement pertaining to the “patrolling arrangements”]( and the resolution of the military stand-off at the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the Union government announced on Monday. Officials told The Hindu that the agreement includes the friction points of Demchok and Depsang. The news was announced by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri during a press briefing on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Russia for the BRICS summit, which Chinese President Xi Jinping is also expected to attend. Mr. Misri said that over the last several weeks, discussions between Indian and Chinese diplomatic and military negotiators at various fora have yielded agreements on patrolling arrangements along the LAC, “leading to disengagement and a resolution of the issues that had arisen in these areas in 2020.” No further details about the agreement were offered by Mr. Misri, who has previously served as India’s Ambassador to China. He did however, highlight a few recent meetings leading up to the breakthrough; this includes two meetings between Mr. Jaishankar and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in June-July, two meetings of the WMCC mechanism of diplomatic and military officials in July-August, and a meeting between National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Mr. Wang in September. The importance of the patrolling agreement was delineated by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar a few hours later: the patrolling had stopped in 2020, following which the two sides accepted “buffer zones” in some areas of dispute which prevented patrolling along the usual routes by the two militaries. On an interview to the television channel NDTV, Mr Jaishankar said that with this, “we have gone back to where the situation was in 2020. With that we can say the disengagement process with China has been completed.” Previously, the government has indicated that disengagement would merely be the start and normalcy at the LAC would be restored only after “deinduction and demobilisation” of troops by both sides. The Chinese government has not announced the agreement or commented about it. The announcement may portend a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping at the BRICs summit, being held in Kazan. However, when asked about a possible meeting between the leaders, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lin Jian said they would inform “if anything comes up”. Mr. Misri too, did not confirm such a meeting, but indicated that the government was considering a number of [bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan.]( The Hindu’s Editorials [Arrow][Culture and society: On upholding Section 6A of the Citizenship Act]( [Arrow][​Allow for deliberation: On the legitimate demands of Ladakh]( The Hindu’s Daily Quiz What is the average per-day income of a farmer in the country? - ₹50 - ₹27 - ₹200 - ₹120 To know the answer and to play the full quiz, [click here](. 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